Judges React to Kanye West's Surprise 'American Idol' Audition

Kanye West has a golden ticket to Hollywood!

The 38-year-old rapper and his pregnant wife Kim Kardashian crashed the American Idol auditions in San Francisco on Saturday. After a moment of shock, the judges proceeded to treat West just like any other person auditioning for a spot on the final season of the singing competition show.

NEWS: President Barack Obama Gives Kanye West Advice for Presidential Run

After being asked his name and where he was from, West rapped an a capella version of his hit song "Gold Digger." Props to him on the song selection, as the lyrics name drop judge Jennifer Lopez.

ET was at the auditions and caught up with the judges backstage to get their reactions on the rapper's surprise appearance. Keith Urban said West was a "great sport."

"When he came on, he just sort of came in like an audition," the country singer revealed. "I said, 'Tell us your name, where are you from?' And he went right with it, which was great. I meant to ask him, 'Are you married? Tell us a bit about your family.'"

Harry Connick, Jr. told ET that he did a double take when West entered the room.

WATCH: Kanye West Goes on Epic Twitter Rant Over Daughter North's App Spending Spree

"I was looking off to the side at my phone or something, and I saw a guy that looked a lot like Kanye West come in, and it turned out it was him," Connick, Jr. said. "We didn't hear him sing -- he just did a little rapping. But as Keith said, he looks like he might have a promising career after all of this."

Lopez also enjoyed West's drop-in, calling the experience "nice" and "really fun."

"It livened up the whole place. We gave him a ticket -- he can come to Hollywood if he wants," she joked. "You can come, Kanye! I don't know if you could've ever gotten there on your own, but you can get there now!"

If this all seems like a gimmick, think again. Idol's host, Ryan Seacrest, told ET that West's audition wasn't planned.

NEWS: American Idol -- 'Thanks For the Memories!'

"[Kim and Kanye] were at Barneys across the street when they heard we were doing auditions," he said. "The judges didn't know he was going to come. He put on a number, and he performed a song."

Seacrest also noted that West's wife was backstage watching the entire time.

"Kim was a little nervous outside the door as she was waiting to see how he would do," Seacrest joked to ET. "But that was a surprise to the judges. I actually wasn't sure they were coming either, but when they walked through it was quite a moment."

Seacrest posted a hilarious photo of him mid-high-five with West. "See u in Hollywood @kanyewest," he tweeted. "(You too @kimkardashian)."

Kardashian also took to Twitter to share a behind-the-scenes photo of the Idol moment, writing: "SURPRISE!"

West was in town to attend an event supporting the Democratic Hope Fund, where President Barack Obama gave Yeezy some advice on running for the oval office in 2020.

WATCH: Kim Kardashian's Winter Due Date Confirmed

Here's West declaring his run for presidency while accepting the Video Vanguard Award at the MTV Video Music Awards in late August.

Kanye West Declares He's Running for President During VMA Video Vanguard Speech

This video is unavailable because we were unable to load a message from our sponsors.

If you are using ad-blocking software, please disable it and reload the page.

Up Next